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Simultaneous increase in cellular content and volumetric concentration of lipids in Bracteacoccus bullatus cultivated at reduced nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations

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Abstract

Manipulation of the nutrient concentration is an inexpensive and efficient method for increasing lipid and TAG accumulation in algal cells. However, high volumetric production requires finding a proper balance between the decrease of biomass production and the increase in the total lipid content. We isolated a strain of green microalga Bracteacoccus bullatus and increased its lipid content from 17 to 59% of biomass dry weight by manipulating of nitrogen and phosphorus content in the medium. The 10-fold reduction of the nitrogen and phosphorus concentration in the medium was the most efficient method of the lipid induction compared to nutrient deplete and high nutrient conditions. The oleic (48–64% mass of total fatty acids) and linoleic (14–24% mass of total fatty acids) acids dominated in the fatty acid profile, thus making this strain a suitable candidate for biodiesel production.

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Acknowledgements

All authors contributed equally to this work. In general, LLC “Solixant” is interested in the potential of microalgae as an alternative sustainable source of lipids. This does not alter the authors’ adherence to the Journal of Applied Phycology policies on sharing data and materials. This work was supported by Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (project 14.574.21.0137, identifier RFMEFI57417X0137).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LLC “Solixant”, 119991, Moscow, Russia

    Anna Mamaeva, Evgeniy Gusev, Maria Petrushkina, Alla Filimonova, Boris Sorokin, Nikita Zotko & Denis Kuzmin

  2. NRC “Kurchatov Institute”, 123182, Moscow, Russia

    Zorigto Namsaraev

  3. Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters RAS, 152742, Borok, Russia

    Yevhen Maltsev

  4. Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Melitopоl State Pedagogical University, Melitopol, 72312, Ukraine

    Yevhen Maltsev

  5. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology RAS, 127276, Moscow, Russia

    Evgeniy Gusev & Maxim Kulikovskiy

  6. Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, 119991, Moscow, Russia

    Maria Petrushkina, Boris Sorokin, Vladimir Vinokurov, Dmitry Kopitsyn, Daria Petrova & Andrei Novikov

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  1. Anna Mamaeva
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  2. Zorigto Namsaraev
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  3. Yevhen Maltsev
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Correspondence to Zorigto Namsaraev.

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Mamaeva, A., Namsaraev, Z., Maltsev, Y. et al. Simultaneous increase in cellular content and volumetric concentration of lipids in Bracteacoccus bullatus cultivated at reduced nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations. J Appl Phycol 30, 2237–2246 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-018-1471-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-018-1471-9

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